Passover

April 3, 2012 in Community, Holidays, Jewish Living by The Lake Norman Rabbi

The festival of Passover will soon be upon us and I wanted to share a wonderful article written by one of my teachers, Rabbi Richard Address.  Enjoy!

http://jewishsacredaging.com/2012/04/03/passover-and-the-cleansing-of-the-soul/

 

 

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Protecting the Civil Marriage Rights of All Citizens – Defeating Amendment 1 (NC)

March 30, 2012 in Community, Jewish Living, Social Action, Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

I just got off of a phone call for rabbis in North Carolina about the effort to defeat Amendment 1 in North Carolina on May 8, 2012.  Our Reform movement speaks very clearly in support of Civil marriage rights for gays and lesbians.  Recognition of same-sex couples’ right to civil marriage will not affect religious marriage.  Each religious group is free to define religious marriage in its own way, and any clergyperson retains the right to refuse to officiate over same-sex marriages.

My colleague, Fred Gutman wrote:  It is unacceptable to enshrine discrimination into our (North Carolina) state constitution, and this is exactly what Amendment 1 will do.

This amendment to the North Carolina state constitution would further impose the religious views of some on the masses who do not necessarily reach the same conclusions. In North Carolina, Amendment 1 seeks to further infringe upon the civil rights of one group of people, not affording them the same rights and protections under the law.

Gay and Lesbian Rights and Jewish Values

The two most often cited Biblical texts concerning homosexuality are both found in the book of Leviticus, where they are in the context of a larger section directing sexual behavior. First, it is written: “Do not lie with a male as one lies with a woman; it is an abhorrence.” (Leviticus 18:22) The second citation is from Leviticus 20:13, where we read that “If a man lies with a male as one lies with a woman, the two of them have done an abhorrent thing; they shall be put to death-their blood guilt is upon them.”

However, we are also guided by the very basic belief that all human beings are created b’tselem Elohim (in the Divine image), as it says in Genesis 1:27, “And God created humans in God’s own image, in the image of God, God created them; male and female God created them.” Rabbi David Saperstein said in Congressional testimony in support of ENDA that “regardless of context, discrimination against any person arising from apathy, insensitivity, ignorance, fear, or hatred is inconsistent with this fundamental belief. We oppose discrimination against all individuals, including gays, lesbians, and bisexuals, for the stamp of the Divine is present in each and every one of us.”

Each of us, created in God’s image, has a unique talent, with which we can contribute to the high moral purpose of tikkun olam, the repair of our world. Excluding anyone from our community lessens our chance of achieving this goal of a more perfect world.

Position of the Reform Jewish Movement
The Reform Movement has been an advocate of gay and lesbian rights since 1965, when the Women of Reform Judaism (WRJ) passed a resolution calling for the decriminalization of homosexuality. In 1977, the URJ and the CCAR passed their first resolutions dealing with this issue, calling for human rights for homosexuals. Since then, the URJ, CCAR, WRJ, CSA, and NFTY have passed resolutions dealing with issues specific to Reform Judaism, such as inclusion of gays and lesbians in the rabbinate and cantorate, as well as national issues, such as support for civil marriage, elimination of discrimination within the Armed Forces and the Boy Scouts, and support for explicit workplace non-discrimination and civil rights legislation..

In addition, the Reform Jewish movement is committed to working to secure civil rights for gay men and lesbians, including the right to civil marriage. Both the URJ and the CCAR have adopted resolutions in support of gay and lesbian partnerships. In its 1993 resolution, the URJ resolved, among other things, to call upon congregations to extend the same benefits that are afforded to heterosexual spouses of staff members to homosexual partners of staff members. The CCAR, in its 1996 resolution on gay and lesbian partnerships, resolved to “oppose governmental efforts to ban gay and lesbian marriage.”..

The Religious Action Center details further the ongoing fight for marriage equality across the United States.

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Lake Norman Jewish Dreaming

March 27, 2012 in Community, Jewish Living, Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

Jewish life in the Lake Norman region has flourished over the past four years. In the past decade the community has grown from a couple dozen families to more than 175 families. This encompasses more than 500 souls and 130 students in our religious schools. We have all come to understand better what it means to be a sacred community.

Jewish life in the North has grown dramatically, and we have managed to maintain the intimacy that comes with a community focused congregation. The Jewish community is a powerful connection point for so many more people, but like the bar in Cheers everyone still knows your name. Every person is counted and cherished. Every individual can help the community grow its excellent programming.

As the Rabbi I have learned three important values that the community holds dear:

1) “Kol Yisrael Aravim Zeh B’zeh” – Mutual Responsibility
We like to say that we will “Make Great mistakes together.” While we do not seek out mistakes, this mantra reflects our deep sense of responsibility to each other as we take up this community building endeavor. We face challenges together boldly, knowing that our fellow members will be there to celebrate successes but also to correct and learn from missteps. By relying on each other and our collective wisdom we marshal our resources to good communal ends.

2) Every Tradition Was Once A New Idea
We welcome tradition and the adaptation of beautiful customs and ideas from other places, but we also believe strongly that new ideas can come from anyone – young, “young at heart,” and everyone in between. Every individual has the potential to help us be radically innovative when the need arises. We need “all hands on deck,” and welcome new voices to join our chorus and sit with us at our shared table. “We are not your grandmother’s congregation,” but we love grandma and all that she can teach us.

3) Im tirzu ein zo agadah – “If you will it, it is no longer a dream.”
With all the pieces (people) we have and all the ones we will add in the months and years to come we can be dreamers. We can envision the community we want and make that dream a reality. This is a sacred responsibility and an empowering and meaningful way to engage in Judaism.

This is an exciting time to be part of the Jewish community up at Lake Norman. The Greater Charlotte Community can now claim two full time Jewish communal centers: The established bastion of Shalom Park, and the dynamic and spirited northern community based in Davidson.

It truly has been a Shanah Tovah (A Good Year) and there is still much more to come. We welcome all to join with us on this communal journey.

formspring.me

March 27, 2012 in Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

Ask me questions about Judaism/Spirituality http://www.formspring.me/AskThRabbi

Don’t Let the Stigma of Mental Illness Stop Us from Helping Those In Need

March 14, 2012 in Community, Family, Jewish Living, Social Action, Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

 

The recent rejection of the mental health hospital in Huntersville was troubling to me. (See March 6, 2012, “Huntersville board rejects mental health hospital, 4-2.”) It seems that many people just do not understand the actual safety procedures that would be in place and/or the myths about those diagnosed with a mental disorder and in need of hospitalization are still alive and well. It appears the “not in my backyard” argument has won out over the actual reality and ramifications of such a facility.

The stigma attached to mental illness has defeated our responsibility to raise awareness of mental illness and help make sure that there is a place where the thousands of people in the lake Norman region who struggle with mental illness can find help if needed.

The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism points out that “according to the American Psychiatric Association, an estimated 26.2 percent of Americans ages 18 and older (about 1 in 4 adults) suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year which interferes with employment, school attendance, or daily life. No one is immune from mental illness. Any person – regardless of age, economic status, or race – can develop a mental illness. Depression affects 14.8 million Americans, or about 6.7 percent of the U.S. adult population every year. The effects of mental illness on society are far-reaching: in financial terms, the direct and indirect costs of mental and substance-abuse disorders total more than $273 billion per year. Even more devastating are the effects of mental illness on families. More than 90 percent of people who commit suicide have a diagnosable mental disorder, most commonly a depressive disorder or a substance abuse disorder. Mental illness results in lost employment, reduced productivity, criminal activity, and vehicular accidents. Additionally, there is a strong correlation between mental illness and homelessness, with approximately 20 to 25 percent of the single adult homeless population suffering from some form of severe and persistent mental illness. Mental illness is clearly an issue that deserves and requires our attention.” (http://rac.org/Articles/index.cfm?id=1693&pge_prg_id=9418&pge_id=2428)

A mental health facility therefore would serve to make our families stronger, reduce longer term financial costs of mental illness, reduce crime and hardship for individuals and the communities in which they live, and serve to reduce homelessness. While the stigma of mental illness may scare us, this should not stop us from “loving our neighbor as our self,” treating our fellow souls with compassion and care, and dealing with the realities of mental illness in our community.

I write this both as a concerned citizen but also as a Rabbi and religious leader in the community. Judaism acknowledges a distinction between mental and physical health. However, tradition treats them on an equal plane, recognizing that both a healthy body and a healthy mind are necessary for human beings to be complete. In the traditional healing prayer of Judaism, we pray for refuah sheleimah – a complete recovery – which includes refuat ha-nefesh u’refuat haguf, a healing of the soul and the body. As citizens with mutual responsibility for one another, it is incumbent upon us to make sure that each of us and our neighbor have the access to excellent medical care, including access to quality mental health facilities.

My Jewish faith calls on me, as a colleague said, to “advocate on behalf of all those around the world who struggle with mental illness and work toward the day when every individual has the support and resources they need to realize their full potential.” (Barbara Weinstein, Legislative Director, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism) This notion is prevalent in virtually all faiths and transcends faith.

The Book of Isaiah says: “Fear you not; for I am with you: be not dismayed; for I am your God: I will strengthen you; yes, I will help you; yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.” (Isaiah 41:10) If we are created in the image of God as it says in Genesis 1:27, then we have a responsibility to act in Godly ways in our world. We must strengthen, help and uphold our fellow human beings.

 

 

 

 

http://davidsonnews.net/blog/2012/03/14/dont-let-stigma-of-mental-health-stop-help-for-those-in-need/

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Reform Movement Perspective on Gay and Lesbian Rights and Jewish Values

March 13, 2012 in Community, Jewish Living, Social Action, Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

Prepared by colleagues of mine in Greensboro, NC

The two most often cited Biblical texts concerning homosexuality are both found in the book of Leviticus, where they are in the context of a larger section directing sexual behavior. First, it is written: “Do not lie with a male as one lies with a woman; it is an abhorrence.” (Leviticus 18:22) The second citation is from Leviticus 20:13, where we read that “If a man lies with a male as one lies with a woman, the two of them have done an abhorrent thing; they shall be put to death-their blood guilt is upon them.”

In this verse, the word for “abomination” or “abhorrence” is Toevah. Interestingly, that the exact same word is used to describe eating fish that do not have fins and scales (such as catfish and shrimp), carcasses, eagles, bearded vultures, buzzards, ravens, owls, storks, herons and bats. The word is also used in reference to those who use unjust scales, those who lie or have a perverse heart, the way of the wicked, and those who are unjust or proud of heart. Clearly, selecting some biblical verses concerning abomination to observe, while ignoring others, is not valid from a biblical point of view. Such selection would tend to reflect the innate biases of
the “selector” rather than solid biblical scholarship.

However as Reform Jews, we are also guided by the very basic belief that all human beings are created b’tselem Elohim (in the Divine image), as it says in Genesis 1:27, “And God created humans in God’s own image, in the image of God, God created them; male and female God created them.” Rabbi David Saperstein, the director of Reform Judaism’s Religious Action Center recently said in Congressional testimony that “regardless of context, discrimination against any person arising from apathy, insensitivity, ignorance, fear, or hatred is inconsistent with this fundamental belief. We oppose discrimination against all individuals, including gays, lesbians, and bisexuals, for the stamp of the Divine is present in each and every one of us.”

Each of us, created in God’s image, has a unique talent, with which we can contribute to the high moral purpose of tikkun olam, the repair of our world. Excluding anyone from our community lessens our chance of achieving this goal of a more perfect world.

The Reform Movement has been an advocate of gay and lesbian rights since 1965, when the Women of Reform Judaism (WRJ) passed a resolution calling for the decriminalization of homosexuality. In 1977, our movement called for human rights for homosexuals. Since then, our movement has accepted the inclusion of gays and lesbians in the rabbinate and cantorate, elimination of discrimination within the Armed Forces and the Boy Scouts, legislation which called for workplace non-discrimination and other civil rights legislation. In addition, the Reform Jewish movement is committed to working to secure civil rights for gay men and lesbians, including the right to civil marriage.

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A Comment from a Colleague, Rabbi Fred Guttman (Greensboro, NC)

It is unacceptable to enshrine discrimination into our state constitution
“We reject any attempt to write into the constitution of this state under the guise of protecting heterosexual marriage an amendment which seeks to restrict the rights of a certain group of people based upon their sexual identity. As Jews, we would respond passionately in this area. As Jews, we would recall that in 1935, the Nuremberg laws prohibited marriage between Jews and Germans or people of kindred blood. Based upon the history of the murder of six million Jews, laws prohibiting marriages might represent a slippery slope towards greater discrimination.

When this country was founded over two hundred years ago, “we the people” included only white males. Since that time, equal protection has been extended to all of our citizens, except for our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters.

Laws prohibiting marriages between white people and Negroes were enacted as early as 1872. Such laws were overturned by the Supreme Court in 1967. In South Africa, similar laws were enacted in 1949 and repealed in 1985.

This amendment will not strengthen the institution of heterosexual marriages in our state or for that matter in our country. Let us separate the religious issue from the issue of discrimination and civil rights.”

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Prophets and Guardians: Engaging with the Israel We Love

January 30, 2012 in Community, Israel, Jewish Living, Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

On Thursday January 19, Julie Bernstein of the Israel Action Network came and spoke about how the members of our community can advocate responsibly for the  State of Israel.  For those who missed it, you can get information at  www.israelactionetwork.org.  It is important for all of us to be educated about the  facts and the situation in Israel and the territories inhabited by Palestinians, but what is most important is that we emphasize the unified desire of all those who love Israel to help make progress in establishing a lasting and secure peace for the Jewish State and its neighbors.

Julie shared with us tips on how to have meaningful conversations with other Jews but also with the wider community.  The most profound part of her talk was when she addressed a question of differing perspectives and tactics by Jewish groups.  Instead of pitting one Jewish group against another, one Jew against his brother, she challenged us to think of all Jews as fitting into one of two categories;  prophets or guardians.

The prophetic voice calls on Israel and Jewish people to live up to the higher standard that our tradition demands.  We are called to be a light unto the nations, and therefore, at the same time that the prophets love Israel, they call on it to protect the needy, the orphan, the sick, whether Israeli or not.

The guardians are a different brand of patriot.  They stand at attention, ever-vigilant to the external and existential threats to the Jewish homeland. Both the ‘Prophets’ and the ‘Guardians’ love the State of Israel.  Israel is the reason they do what they do.  We each have a bit of ‘prophet’ and a bit of guardian in us.  It is a spectrum.  The balance between the voices and the wrestling of the two voices is what can lead to a vigilant but compassionate approach to the challenges and fears Israelis face everyday and the hardship that many individual Palestinians encounter.

So let us begin there.  We are all guardians and prophets.  We all must struggle with our love for the State of Israel.

Kol Yisrael areivim zeh b’zeh

December 21, 2011 in Community, Jewish Living, Shabbat, Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

Our community is at a pivotal stage in our development.  For six years many people have labored for the communal good.  In Jewish tradition, the seventh year, at least for the ancient Israelite agricultural system was considered a sabbatical year, a year of rest.  One might think that this meant a year of doing nothing.  That would be wrong.

 

Instead, a sabbatical year was a year of great activity;  old granaries were repaired and new ones were built. Failing enterprises and initiatives were put to rest and new and promising ones were finally launched;  A year in which strategic plans that had been in the preparation stages were implemented.

 

Sabbatical was like the Shabbat; a time to focus on and work towards greater holiness;  A year of sacred action and also a year to focus on the sacred relationships between community members and to expand our circle to embrace new souls.

 

In some ways, the coming year is our sabbatical year.  I turn to a passage from Talmud, masechet Shevuot that says… (Mas. Shevu’oth 39a):   “Kol Yisrael areivim zeh b’zeh.” – All Israel are responsible for one another.  It is in a discussion of who is guilty and who blameless, who has responsibility for whom. And the conclusion of the rabbis is that we all are responsible for each other.

 

In a midrash,  “A man in a boat began to bore a hole under his seat. His fellow passengers protested. ‘What concern is it of yours?’ he responded, ‘I am making a hole under my seat, not yours.’ They replied, ‘That is so, but when the water enters and the boat sinks, we too will drown.’” (Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, Leviticus Rabbah 4:6)

The whole communal enterprise of our synagogue is like a great ship.  We traverse the great expanse, finding our way together.  There are storms and there are beautiful ocean sunsets.  We are men and women of many places who desire to build for ourselves a sacred community in which we can perform mitzvot – form special bonds with others and with God.  We can fashion a place of refuge for one another against life’s storms and we can move towards mutual goals of faith, family, and fellowship.  Every individual matters and no individual is intrinsically more valuable than any other.

One could just think of the boat as a mode of transportation, a “means to an end;” a way to bar-mitzvah a child, a way to gain the approval of parents, etc.;  but one would be missing the much larger and more profound message.

We are all in the same boat…..NO, we ARE the boat. Kol areivim ze b’zeh. We are each responsible for one another.  According to Rabbi Bunim of P’shiskha, everyone should have two pockets, each containing a slip of paper. On one should be written: ‘I am but dust and ashes’, and on the other: ‘The world was created for me’. From time to time we must reach into one pocket, or the other. The two sayings give us a balanced perspective on our role in the community.

What does the metaphor of the boat teach us about the nature of living as part of a community?

The key to this text is to understand the word areiv. In legal terms, it means a guarantor: one who guarantees an obligation and has a legal duty to fulfill it. Simply by virtue of being part of the this community, I am responsible for you and you are responsible for me. I promise to take care of you and you promise to take care of me.

Another meaning of areiv is being mixed up or bound together with something. That is, members of a Jewish community (whether Jewish or married to or related to someone Jewish) are bound together not just legally but emotionally, historically, and culturally.  We are all part of the same unfolding community story.

Living as part of the community can necessitate giving up individual freedom. Our independence extends only to the extent that it does not compromise the welfare of the group.

In Parashat Nitzavim of the Torah it says:  Atem nitzavim hayom. “You are standing here today, each one of you, from the elders of the community to the drawers of water…”  It is saying that everyone has an equal right to Torah and to a community.  We each have an equal right to and perhaps even more importantly we each have a responsibility to the Torah and to this community.

 

Jewish Values and Health Care from the Religious Action Center

December 8, 2011 in Uncategorized by The Lake Norman Rabbi

For those who are interested…..

http://rac.org/Articles/index.cfm?id=1825&pge_prg_id=15880&pge_id=2415

Creating Food Justice

December 6, 2011 in Community, Jewish Living, Social Action, Torah by The Lake Norman Rabbi

I recently took an rabbinical continuing education session online entitled ‘Creating Food Justice.’   The session looked at the book, “The Sacred Table: Creating a Jewish Food Ethic.”

Midrash says (loosely translated): The mitzvot were given for one reason:  ”For us to be refined into better human beings and to fashion more ethical communities.”

One of the central messages of the book, “The Sacred Table,” is that:

WE MUST INFUSE EATING WITH ETHICS.

Reform Jews often throw out ritual such as kashrut because they see the purpose of Judaism as being all about the ethical rules of Judaism not about the “picky” rules, especially in the realm of kashrut.  BUT…….

What happens if rules of keeping kosher are fundamentally about ethics?

Dr. Jacob Milgram, a renowned scholar, posited that the dietary laws exist to help Israel develop a higher reverence for life.  One of the rabbis on teh call, Rabbi Zamore, said:  ”Our sacred practices, the way in which we interact with our traditions allows us to refine us and define us.”  She called on Reform Jews to be educated about Judaism and to reexamine our approach to kashrut and our relationship to food and food policy in our nation.

Kashrut can, at its best, bring a sense of intentionality before we purchase or eat something.  We must recognize that we are truly shaping our personal environment, our community, and the earth.  If we had this intentionality, perhaps we would make different choices. Another scholar on the call, Leah Koenig said that Kashrut also offers us the notion that the act of limiting our consumption can be a source of spiritual empowerment.”

“The Sacred Table” is challenging our Reform Community to not go into ‘automatic pilot mode’, but to think more deeply about the history of kashrut and Reform Judaism and to see kashrut as intertwined with greater values and spirituality.

I would highly recommend the book and would have provided some resources below.

The scholars on the call were asked to address the following questions and more and they are good for us to consider as a community:

1) What are biggest challenges facing America and Jewish community related to food?

-We’ve lost the spiritual center/sense of the food process.  Kashrut                        can help us do that and therefore do God’s work in the world.

2) What is a Jewish food ethic?  What will success look like?

3) What does a sacred Jewish table look like?

Leah Koenig:   ” We have to find a path of reasonable righteousness….following to the best of our abilities our traditions.”  Kashrut and ethics are the legs of our table.  Blessings create the table top…..We must remember to be grateful for the blessings of food that find their way to our table…..Brachot offer an anecdote to our 24/7 mode of living…….”  Eating at the Jewish table must be seen as both a privilege and a gift.  Brachot are a round applause to God and the farmers who made the food possible.   The glue that binds the table together are the blessings for food that we and others remember to make.  When we offer these blessings we will eat more mindfully and more responsibly.

4)What would you like to see rabbis do in the realm of food justice?

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Some interesting links to delve further:

Leviticus Text establishing basis for Kashrut laws:  http://ccarnet.org/_kd/Items/actions.cfm?action=Show&item_id=4221&destination=ShowItem

http://ccarnet.org/_kd/Items/actions.cfm?action=Show&item_id=4228&destination=ShowItem (phone call)

http://www.fairfoodbook.org/

http://www.fairfoodnetwork.org/

Fair Food YouTube Channel - http://www.youtube.com/fairfoodnetwork

http://www.fairfoodnetwork.org/sites/default/files/HealthyFoodForAll_FullReport.pdf

http://www.doubleupfoodbucks.org/

www.rac.org

 

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